The European Union is frequently accused of having a ‘democratic deficit’. Many commentators argue that this could be remedied by increasing the powers of the European Parliament relative to those of ...
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The European Union is frequently accused of having a ‘democratic deficit’. Many commentators argue that this could be remedied by increasing the powers of the European Parliament relative to those of the Council and the Commission. The fact that the European Parliament is the only EU institution whose members are directly elected leads to the assumption that it is also the most legitimate. This book argues that this position is based on the flawed assumption that the nature of European citizenry is similar to those of the member states. In other words, the position assumes that the union has a demos, or a people, who are prepared to accept majority outcomes even when finding themselves in the minority. The book argues that this is not the case and that the most severe dimension of the democracy problem is not procedural, but socio-psychological. The fact that the EU does not have a people means that establishing an EU-wide democracy based on analogies to domestic political systems is likely to lead to a further loss of democratic legitimacy. The EU can rely on output legitimacy in policy areas which do not require pan-European solidarity and identity, and in which policy-making at EU-level increases efficiency and thereby benefits all citizens. However, policy areas which require high levels of solidarity or a common identity should either remain fully within the nation states, or be subject to intergovernmental rather than supranational decision-making at EU-level.Less

The European Union and the People

Mette Elise Jolly

Published in print: 2007-05-01

The European Union is frequently accused of having a ‘democratic deficit’. Many commentators argue that this could be remedied by increasing the powers of the European Parliament relative to those of the Council and the Commission. The fact that the European Parliament is the only EU institution whose members are directly elected leads to the assumption that it is also the most legitimate. This book argues that this position is based on the flawed assumption that the nature of European citizenry is similar to those of the member states. In other words, the position assumes that the union has a demos, or a people, who are prepared to accept majority outcomes even when finding themselves in the minority. The book argues that this is not the case and that the most severe dimension of the democracy problem is not procedural, but socio-psychological. The fact that the EU does not have a people means that establishing an EU-wide democracy based on analogies to domestic political systems is likely to lead to a further loss of democratic legitimacy. The EU can rely on output legitimacy in policy areas which do not require pan-European solidarity and identity, and in which policy-making at EU-level increases efficiency and thereby benefits all citizens. However, policy areas which require high levels of solidarity or a common identity should either remain fully within the nation states, or be subject to intergovernmental rather than supranational decision-making at EU-level.

This book offers an innovative analysis of social service, and charitable and philanthropic initiatives in late colonial north India during the first two decades of the twentieth century. It also ...
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This book offers an innovative analysis of social service, and charitable and philanthropic initiatives in late colonial north India during the first two decades of the twentieth century. It also shows the crucial interdependency between an active citizenry and a vibrant associational culture or civil society as revealed in groups such as the Arya Samaj, The Servants of India Society, the Theosophical Society, and the Seva Samiti of Allahabad, among others. How foreign ideas of social service, charity and philanthropy were negotiated by Hindu living traditions of seva, dana, karmayoga, sannyas and brahmacharya are also discussed. The book also analyses different social processes exemplifying the complex nexus between tradition and modernity in these decades. The author feels that the Indian belief in the bio-moral connection between healthy bodies and patriotic action making for ‘manly’ citizens was part of a global trend. How changing practices in the overlapping fields of charity and service, and the creation of active and patriotic Indian citizens affected politics, nation-building, and civil society in India is detailed.Less

Serving the Nation : Cultures of Service, Association and Citizenship

Carey Anthony Watt

Published in print: 2005-12-22

This book offers an innovative analysis of social service, and charitable and philanthropic initiatives in late colonial north India during the first two decades of the twentieth century. It also shows the crucial interdependency between an active citizenry and a vibrant associational culture or civil society as revealed in groups such as the Arya Samaj, The Servants of India Society, the Theosophical Society, and the Seva Samiti of Allahabad, among others. How foreign ideas of social service, charity and philanthropy were negotiated by Hindu living traditions of seva, dana, karmayoga, sannyas and brahmacharya are also discussed. The book also analyses different social processes exemplifying the complex nexus between tradition and modernity in these decades. The author feels that the Indian belief in the bio-moral connection between healthy bodies and patriotic action making for ‘manly’ citizens was part of a global trend. How changing practices in the overlapping fields of charity and service, and the creation of active and patriotic Indian citizens affected politics, nation-building, and civil society in India is detailed.

This chapter explains the pros and cons of both the traditional and neo-liberal view on the role of the government in economics. The traditional function of the state in economics is that the ...
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This chapter explains the pros and cons of both the traditional and neo-liberal view on the role of the government in economics. The traditional function of the state in economics is that the government is there to effectively allocate the resources of the state among the citizenry. On the other hand, the neo-liberal approach is that the markets should operate free from the government intervention. The principle espoused by the neo-liberals is also known as the Laissez-Faire approach. However, according to the book, a market fully free from government intervention is still impossible to operate. A third way is still more effective than the Laissez-Faire system, and this third kind is present in East-Asian countries. On the other hand, socialism, which requires the planning of all the economic activity within the state by the government is not effective as evidenced by the attempted conversion by Czechoslovakia to a free market economy and the subsequent fall of the communist states and Soviet Union.Less

Introduction

Ha-Joon ChangRobert Rowthorn

Published in print: 1995-12-28

This chapter explains the pros and cons of both the traditional and neo-liberal view on the role of the government in economics. The traditional function of the state in economics is that the government is there to effectively allocate the resources of the state among the citizenry. On the other hand, the neo-liberal approach is that the markets should operate free from the government intervention. The principle espoused by the neo-liberals is also known as the Laissez-Faire approach. However, according to the book, a market fully free from government intervention is still impossible to operate. A third way is still more effective than the Laissez-Faire system, and this third kind is present in East-Asian countries. On the other hand, socialism, which requires the planning of all the economic activity within the state by the government is not effective as evidenced by the attempted conversion by Czechoslovakia to a free market economy and the subsequent fall of the communist states and Soviet Union.

With the arrival of the transcontinental railroad in the 1880s came the emergence of a modern and profoundly multicultural New Mexico. Native Americans, working-class Mexicans, elite Hispanos, and ...
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With the arrival of the transcontinental railroad in the 1880s came the emergence of a modern and profoundly multicultural New Mexico. Native Americans, working-class Mexicans, elite Hispanos, and black-and-white newcomers all commingled and interacted in the territory in ways that had not been previously possible. But what did it mean to be white in this multiethnic milieu? And how did ideas of sexuality and racial supremacy shape ideas of citizenry and determine who would govern the region? This book considers these questions as it explores how New Mexicans evaluated and categorized racial identities through bodily practices. Where ethnic groups were numerous and—in the wake of miscegenation—often difficult to discern, the ways one dressed, bathed, spoke, gestured, or even stood were largely instrumental in conveying one's race. Even such practices as cutting one's hair, shopping, drinking alcohol, or embalming a deceased loved one could inextricably link a person to a very specific racial identity.Less

Pablo Mitchell

Published in print: 2005-01-15

With the arrival of the transcontinental railroad in the 1880s came the emergence of a modern and profoundly multicultural New Mexico. Native Americans, working-class Mexicans, elite Hispanos, and black-and-white newcomers all commingled and interacted in the territory in ways that had not been previously possible. But what did it mean to be white in this multiethnic milieu? And how did ideas of sexuality and racial supremacy shape ideas of citizenry and determine who would govern the region? This book considers these questions as it explores how New Mexicans evaluated and categorized racial identities through bodily practices. Where ethnic groups were numerous and—in the wake of miscegenation—often difficult to discern, the ways one dressed, bathed, spoke, gestured, or even stood were largely instrumental in conveying one's race. Even such practices as cutting one's hair, shopping, drinking alcohol, or embalming a deceased loved one could inextricably link a person to a very specific racial identity.

This chapter explores how the ideas and practices of seva were transformed in early twentieth century colonial India. It first investigates the changing ideas of seva, and the way in which service as ...
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This chapter explores how the ideas and practices of seva were transformed in early twentieth century colonial India. It first investigates the changing ideas of seva, and the way in which service as action was related to other Indian concepts of dharma, bhakti and sannyas. It also explores the reasons behind the proliferation of social service associations, sabhas, and samitis in the1910s. The author describes how the assistance of pilgrims at Hindu fairs (such as the Kumbh Melas of 1915, 1918) and pilgrimage centres became one of their most visible undertakings. An examination of concrete, practical examples of active service, including the Indian Boy Scouts Association (begun by Annie Besant) and the Girl Guide Movement, is provided. The author also describes how social service and self-help organizations were involved in educational efforts and the cultivation of bodily health, both concepts being linked to the creation of an active and responsible citizenry.Less

From Seva to Social Service

Carey Anthony Watt

Published in print: 2005-12-22

This chapter explores how the ideas and practices of seva were transformed in early twentieth century colonial India. It first investigates the changing ideas of seva, and the way in which service as action was related to other Indian concepts of dharma, bhakti and sannyas. It also explores the reasons behind the proliferation of social service associations, sabhas, and samitis in the1910s. The author describes how the assistance of pilgrims at Hindu fairs (such as the Kumbh Melas of 1915, 1918) and pilgrimage centres became one of their most visible undertakings. An examination of concrete, practical examples of active service, including the Indian Boy Scouts Association (begun by Annie Besant) and the Girl Guide Movement, is provided. The author also describes how social service and self-help organizations were involved in educational efforts and the cultivation of bodily health, both concepts being linked to the creation of an active and responsible citizenry.

From the turn of the millennium, rule of law in Colombia started waning on a daily basis. Colombia inherited a judiciary, which proved to be mostly inoperable over most of the nation's territory and ...
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From the turn of the millennium, rule of law in Colombia started waning on a daily basis. Colombia inherited a judiciary, which proved to be mostly inoperable over most of the nation's territory and legislators and judicial leaders unwilling/ineffective to/in curbing the illegal excesses of the state agents. Colombia's tortuous descent into lawlessness was the direct result of more than half a century of internal armed conflict starting from the civil war between the liberal and conservative parties that lasted from 1946–1958, a period that came to be known as “La Violencia.” Most studies have analyzed Colombia's periods of violence as distinct and unrelated events, with fundamentally different protagonists, issues, and cleavages. In addition, there has been anti-state guerrilla induced violence and para-state violence. Colombia's protracted violence and failed amnesties exposed a state grappling to protect its citizenry or to consolidate a binding and legitimate legal order throughout its national territory.Less

Colombia : Does Injustice Cause Violence?

Susan Eva EcksteinTimothy P. Wickham-Crowley

Published in print: 2003-10-09

From the turn of the millennium, rule of law in Colombia started waning on a daily basis. Colombia inherited a judiciary, which proved to be mostly inoperable over most of the nation's territory and legislators and judicial leaders unwilling/ineffective to/in curbing the illegal excesses of the state agents. Colombia's tortuous descent into lawlessness was the direct result of more than half a century of internal armed conflict starting from the civil war between the liberal and conservative parties that lasted from 1946–1958, a period that came to be known as “La Violencia.” Most studies have analyzed Colombia's periods of violence as distinct and unrelated events, with fundamentally different protagonists, issues, and cleavages. In addition, there has been anti-state guerrilla induced violence and para-state violence. Colombia's protracted violence and failed amnesties exposed a state grappling to protect its citizenry or to consolidate a binding and legitimate legal order throughout its national territory.

Most inquiries concerning democracy phenomenon in Latin America stay preoccupied with explaining the tendency, mostly in context of the new or the “Third Wave” democracies to appeal directly to their ...
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Most inquiries concerning democracy phenomenon in Latin America stay preoccupied with explaining the tendency, mostly in context of the new or the “Third Wave” democracies to appeal directly to their citizenries. In the process, these inquiries majorly lose out on the nature or dynamics of citizen initiative or response. This chapter aims at sorting out this imbalance by exploring politics at the base of society, rather than at its center, by examining the case of Peru. It reviews the political dynamics of local-level governance in Peru, understood as policy implementation and interaction with civil society, in the south-central highland departamento Ayacucho. Appraising the analytical distinction between government policy initiatives and the activities of the civil society, the chapter reflects on the difficulty concerning distinction between “government-down” and “citizen-up” activities. It employs the hypothesis that local populations resort to self-help when the government is unable or unwilling to act.Less

Citizen Responses to Conflict and Political Crisis in Peru : Informal Politics in Ayacucho

Susan Eva EcksteinTimothy P. Wickham-Crowley

Published in print: 2003-10-09

Most inquiries concerning democracy phenomenon in Latin America stay preoccupied with explaining the tendency, mostly in context of the new or the “Third Wave” democracies to appeal directly to their citizenries. In the process, these inquiries majorly lose out on the nature or dynamics of citizen initiative or response. This chapter aims at sorting out this imbalance by exploring politics at the base of society, rather than at its center, by examining the case of Peru. It reviews the political dynamics of local-level governance in Peru, understood as policy implementation and interaction with civil society, in the south-central highland departamento Ayacucho. Appraising the analytical distinction between government policy initiatives and the activities of the civil society, the chapter reflects on the difficulty concerning distinction between “government-down” and “citizen-up” activities. It employs the hypothesis that local populations resort to self-help when the government is unable or unwilling to act.

This chapter offers an introduction to debates about democratic renewal and direct citizen participation as they are being played out in Great Britain in the early years of the twenty-first century. ...
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This chapter offers an introduction to debates about democratic renewal and direct citizen participation as they are being played out in Great Britain in the early years of the twenty-first century. It discusses the notions of a more active citizenry, focusing on the way in which these have been developed by New Labour in its project of modernising governance and as seen by commentators and critics. The chapter also examines the legacy of separation between the National Health Service (NHS) and local government, and the history of attempts to infuse localism, service-user voices, and consumer responsiveness.Less

The rise and rise of participation

Celia DaviesMargaret WetherellElizabeth Barnett

Published in print: 2006-10-04

This chapter offers an introduction to debates about democratic renewal and direct citizen participation as they are being played out in Great Britain in the early years of the twenty-first century. It discusses the notions of a more active citizenry, focusing on the way in which these have been developed by New Labour in its project of modernising governance and as seen by commentators and critics. The chapter also examines the legacy of separation between the National Health Service (NHS) and local government, and the history of attempts to infuse localism, service-user voices, and consumer responsiveness.

In the light of the escalation of sectarian tensions during and after Mubarak’s reign, the predicament of the Arab world’s largest religious minority, the Copts, has come to the forefront. This book ...
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In the light of the escalation of sectarian tensions during and after Mubarak’s reign, the predicament of the Arab world’s largest religious minority, the Copts, has come to the forefront. This book poses such questions as why there has been a mass exodus of Copts from Egypt, and how this relates to other religious minorities in the Arab region; why it is that sectarian violence increased during and after the 2011 Revolution, which epitomized the highest degree of national unity since 1919; and how the new configuration of power has influenced the extent to which a vision of a political order is being based on the principles of inclusive democracy. The book examines the relations among the state, the Church, Coptic citizenry, and political and civil society against the backdrop of the increasing diversification of actors, the change of political leadership in the country, protest and mobilization within Coptic communities, and the transformations occurring in the region. An informative historical background is provided, and new fieldwork and statistical data inform a thoughtful exploration of what it takes to build an inclusive democracy in post-Mubarak Egypt.Less

Copts at the Crossroads : The Challenges of Building Inclusive Democracy in Egypt

Mariz Tadros

Published in print: 2013-06-15

In the light of the escalation of sectarian tensions during and after Mubarak’s reign, the predicament of the Arab world’s largest religious minority, the Copts, has come to the forefront. This book poses such questions as why there has been a mass exodus of Copts from Egypt, and how this relates to other religious minorities in the Arab region; why it is that sectarian violence increased during and after the 2011 Revolution, which epitomized the highest degree of national unity since 1919; and how the new configuration of power has influenced the extent to which a vision of a political order is being based on the principles of inclusive democracy. The book examines the relations among the state, the Church, Coptic citizenry, and political and civil society against the backdrop of the increasing diversification of actors, the change of political leadership in the country, protest and mobilization within Coptic communities, and the transformations occurring in the region. An informative historical background is provided, and new fieldwork and statistical data inform a thoughtful exploration of what it takes to build an inclusive democracy in post-Mubarak Egypt.

This chapter reflects on the state—how it has inscribed compassion into its own rationalities through a legal regime surrounding voluntarism, and how it has hyperinvested in the production and ...
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This chapter reflects on the state—how it has inscribed compassion into its own rationalities through a legal regime surrounding voluntarism, and how it has hyperinvested in the production and standardization of an empathetic figure and sector while at the same time withdrawing its welfarist functions. The production of a sympathetic citizenry is, in short, accompanied by a corollary process whereby the state (embodied not only by the law but also, for example, by the social workers among whom the author conducted research) makes itself appear as dispassionate. This is not to say that the state has withdrawn altogether, but that its public moral authoritarianism around voluntarism is matched by a concomitant relativization of its own commitment to care. Put differently, state absence must be actively produced by the state itself. The effect is a humanitarianized public sphere that makes individual compassion and private empathy primary public virtues.Less

The Production of Compassion

Andrea Muehlebach

Published in print: 2012-06-12

This chapter reflects on the state—how it has inscribed compassion into its own rationalities through a legal regime surrounding voluntarism, and how it has hyperinvested in the production and standardization of an empathetic figure and sector while at the same time withdrawing its welfarist functions. The production of a sympathetic citizenry is, in short, accompanied by a corollary process whereby the state (embodied not only by the law but also, for example, by the social workers among whom the author conducted research) makes itself appear as dispassionate. This is not to say that the state has withdrawn altogether, but that its public moral authoritarianism around voluntarism is matched by a concomitant relativization of its own commitment to care. Put differently, state absence must be actively produced by the state itself. The effect is a humanitarianized public sphere that makes individual compassion and private empathy primary public virtues.

This chapter discusses the alliances that have come under varying degrees of Makedonian influence and were members of a so-called Hellenic Alliance which threatened the ability of the citizenry of ...
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This chapter discusses the alliances that have come under varying degrees of Makedonian influence and were members of a so-called Hellenic Alliance which threatened the ability of the citizenry of Greater Aitolia to engage in their problematical patterns of private economic acquisition on a local basis and also to achieve the primary goal of their federation: security for member communities. The coalition Greater Aitolia organized in 220 withstood significant punishment and territorial losses, and the koinon itself survived the added pressure. The course of the Social War and the situation as it ends thus simply reinforce the conclusion that by 217, the heyday of Greater Aitolia had passed.Less

The First War with Philip V, 221–217 b.c.

Joseph B. Scholten

Published in print: 2000-08-05

This chapter discusses the alliances that have come under varying degrees of Makedonian influence and were members of a so-called Hellenic Alliance which threatened the ability of the citizenry of Greater Aitolia to engage in their problematical patterns of private economic acquisition on a local basis and also to achieve the primary goal of their federation: security for member communities. The coalition Greater Aitolia organized in 220 withstood significant punishment and territorial losses, and the koinon itself survived the added pressure. The course of the Social War and the situation as it ends thus simply reinforce the conclusion that by 217, the heyday of Greater Aitolia had passed.

This chapter examines how conflicting demands for legitimacy place the police in an awkward position vis-à-vis the citizenry. It explains how different ideals such as subservience, separation, and ...
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This chapter examines how conflicting demands for legitimacy place the police in an awkward position vis-à-vis the citizenry. It explains how different ideals such as subservience, separation, and generativity push the police to pursue different paths to make themselves politically palatable. The analysis shows that the narrative of separation possesses great resonance in the police's social world and underwrites a robust resistance to community policing.Less

Elusive Legitimacy: Subservient, Separate, or Generative?

Steve Herbert

Published in print: 2006-04-14

This chapter examines how conflicting demands for legitimacy place the police in an awkward position vis-à-vis the citizenry. It explains how different ideals such as subservience, separation, and generativity push the police to pursue different paths to make themselves politically palatable. The analysis shows that the narrative of separation possesses great resonance in the police's social world and underwrites a robust resistance to community policing.

This chapter examines the cultural orientations and practices of the police that most potently shape their approach to the citizenry. It investigates how different actors within the bureaucracy work ...
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This chapter examines the cultural orientations and practices of the police that most potently shape their approach to the citizenry. It investigates how different actors within the bureaucracy work in relative isolation to attain an independent measure of prestige and explores the common narrative officers employ to understand criminality. The analysis suggests that these dynamics lead officers to resist many of the dicta of community policing, most notably the ideal of communal efficacy.Less

“Don't Drink the Kool-Aid”: On the Resistance to Community Policing

Steve Herbert

Published in print: 2006-04-14

This chapter examines the cultural orientations and practices of the police that most potently shape their approach to the citizenry. It investigates how different actors within the bureaucracy work in relative isolation to attain an independent measure of prestige and explores the common narrative officers employ to understand criminality. The analysis suggests that these dynamics lead officers to resist many of the dicta of community policing, most notably the ideal of communal efficacy.

In 2005, through Tony Blair, the UK focused on the agenda of respectful citizenry. In line with this agenda of enforcing respect, the government established the ‘Respect Task Force’ in September 2005 ...
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In 2005, through Tony Blair, the UK focused on the agenda of respectful citizenry. In line with this agenda of enforcing respect, the government established the ‘Respect Task Force’ in September 2005 and launched the Respect Action Plan on January 2006. In this cross-departmental agenda, the aim was to secure respect, with a heavy emphasis on enforcing standards of behaviour. This book presents a collection of chapters that consider the question of who decides behavioural acceptability in the UK and what respectable behaviour is. The aim of this book is to consider the broader themes of the Respect Agenda such as: respectful city living; respectful young people and children; respectful families and parenting; and issues of diversity, values and identity. This book provides a critical account of a particular phase of government policy, but will have a longer-lasting and broader relevance to discussions of behavioural acceptability and accompanying moral and behavioural politics. In addition to discussing the content and focus of this book, this introductory chapter also discusses other broad themes of respect such as morality, mutuality, reciprocity and maintaining standards of behaviour in public spaces.Less

Introduction

Andrew Millie

Published in print: 2009-04-15

In 2005, through Tony Blair, the UK focused on the agenda of respectful citizenry. In line with this agenda of enforcing respect, the government established the ‘Respect Task Force’ in September 2005 and launched the Respect Action Plan on January 2006. In this cross-departmental agenda, the aim was to secure respect, with a heavy emphasis on enforcing standards of behaviour. This book presents a collection of chapters that consider the question of who decides behavioural acceptability in the UK and what respectable behaviour is. The aim of this book is to consider the broader themes of the Respect Agenda such as: respectful city living; respectful young people and children; respectful families and parenting; and issues of diversity, values and identity. This book provides a critical account of a particular phase of government policy, but will have a longer-lasting and broader relevance to discussions of behavioural acceptability and accompanying moral and behavioural politics. In addition to discussing the content and focus of this book, this introductory chapter also discusses other broad themes of respect such as morality, mutuality, reciprocity and maintaining standards of behaviour in public spaces.

This chapter describes three conditions in Poland's commercial sex industry during the war and in the early years of the new Republic that motivated initiatives that would introduce new statutes to ...
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This chapter describes three conditions in Poland's commercial sex industry during the war and in the early years of the new Republic that motivated initiatives that would introduce new statutes to resolve the dangers of the sex trade. First, there had been an increasing number of women turning to the sex trade. Second, there had been heightened concerns about depopulation and the overall vitality of the new state's citizenry prompted by the eugenics impact of the war. Lastly, there had been a high cost of caring for venereal patients—many of them full-time or part-time prostitutes—which was borne by the local municipality in the new state.Less

Sex in the New Republic

Keely Stauter-Halsted

Published in print: 2015-10-22

This chapter describes three conditions in Poland's commercial sex industry during the war and in the early years of the new Republic that motivated initiatives that would introduce new statutes to resolve the dangers of the sex trade. First, there had been an increasing number of women turning to the sex trade. Second, there had been heightened concerns about depopulation and the overall vitality of the new state's citizenry prompted by the eugenics impact of the war. Lastly, there had been a high cost of caring for venereal patients—many of them full-time or part-time prostitutes—which was borne by the local municipality in the new state.

This chapter argues that citizen engagement, democracy, and good governance are all interconnected and each one of them is responsible for the health of the other two. When citizen engagement ...
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This chapter argues that citizen engagement, democracy, and good governance are all interconnected and each one of them is responsible for the health of the other two. When citizen engagement thrives, it invariably leads to a vibrant democracy and eventually towards an environment of mutual trust, respect, and accountability between the state and the citizenry. That, in turn, can pave way for good governance and democratic functioning of the state's institutions. However, the interpretation of good governance and levels of citizen engagement vary widely between communities and so does the state's willingness and comfort levels with citizen engagement. In such a scenario, both the state and the citizenry have to step out of their comfort zones and take it upon themselves to create space for greater dialogue and innovative ways of engagement. The chapter then assesses whether this is really possible given the changing and complex societal dynamics.Less

Governance, democracy and citizenship

Dr. R BalasubramaniamM N Venkatachaliah

Published in print: 2017-08-15

This chapter argues that citizen engagement, democracy, and good governance are all interconnected and each one of them is responsible for the health of the other two. When citizen engagement thrives, it invariably leads to a vibrant democracy and eventually towards an environment of mutual trust, respect, and accountability between the state and the citizenry. That, in turn, can pave way for good governance and democratic functioning of the state's institutions. However, the interpretation of good governance and levels of citizen engagement vary widely between communities and so does the state's willingness and comfort levels with citizen engagement. In such a scenario, both the state and the citizenry have to step out of their comfort zones and take it upon themselves to create space for greater dialogue and innovative ways of engagement. The chapter then assesses whether this is really possible given the changing and complex societal dynamics.

For the past several decades, scholarship on the Reconstruction era has placed the struggles of the recently enslaved for a meaningful freedom at the center of discussions about the period's ...
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For the past several decades, scholarship on the Reconstruction era has placed the struggles of the recently enslaved for a meaningful freedom at the center of discussions about the period's policies, successes, and failures. But this book synthesizes and reorients the existing scholarship to focus on the loyal citizenry that imposed Reconstruction and the defeated Confederates who had to come to terms with it. Arguing that by war's end, the chief aim of Reconstruction was to unite permanently the nation and to end slavery without sacrificing the basic political framework of Republican democracy, the book shows that, indeed, these aims were met, and with greater success than could have been expected in 1865. Foregrounding what Reconstruction meant for the white citizenry of the time, this book views Reconstruction not simply as a tragic moment when chances for racial accommodation and progress were frittered away but also as a period when Union and emancipation were successfully affirmed and when critical groundwork was laid for the development of the nation into the twentieth century.Less

The Ordeal of the Reunion : A New History of Reconstruction

Mark Wahlgren Summers

Published in print: 2014-10-27

For the past several decades, scholarship on the Reconstruction era has placed the struggles of the recently enslaved for a meaningful freedom at the center of discussions about the period's policies, successes, and failures. But this book synthesizes and reorients the existing scholarship to focus on the loyal citizenry that imposed Reconstruction and the defeated Confederates who had to come to terms with it. Arguing that by war's end, the chief aim of Reconstruction was to unite permanently the nation and to end slavery without sacrificing the basic political framework of Republican democracy, the book shows that, indeed, these aims were met, and with greater success than could have been expected in 1865. Foregrounding what Reconstruction meant for the white citizenry of the time, this book views Reconstruction not simply as a tragic moment when chances for racial accommodation and progress were frittered away but also as a period when Union and emancipation were successfully affirmed and when critical groundwork was laid for the development of the nation into the twentieth century.

The early nineteenth century saw the demise of the Italian-Atlantic tradition of republicanism and the rise of classical liberalism. A distinct Franco-German tradition of republicanism emerged from ...
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The early nineteenth century saw the demise of the Italian-Atlantic tradition of republicanism and the rise of classical liberalism. A distinct Franco-German tradition of republicanism emerged from the time of Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Immanuel Kant, which differs from the older way of thinking associated with neo-republicanism. This chapter examines the key differences between the Italian-Atlantic and Franco-German traditions of republicanism and places them in a historical context. It first considers classical republicanism and how the ideological ideal of equal freedom as nondomination differs from the twin institutional ideals of a mixed constitution and a contestatory citizenry. It then looks at the classical liberal opposition that arose in response to Italian-Atlantic republicanism. It also discusses the views of Kant and Rousseau about freedom and the role of the citizenry, as well as their theory of the constitution. The absolutist opposition in Jean Bodin and Thomas Hobbes to the institutional ideals of republicanism is also explored.Less

Two Republican Traditions

Philip Pettit

Published in print: 2013-05-31

The early nineteenth century saw the demise of the Italian-Atlantic tradition of republicanism and the rise of classical liberalism. A distinct Franco-German tradition of republicanism emerged from the time of Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Immanuel Kant, which differs from the older way of thinking associated with neo-republicanism. This chapter examines the key differences between the Italian-Atlantic and Franco-German traditions of republicanism and places them in a historical context. It first considers classical republicanism and how the ideological ideal of equal freedom as nondomination differs from the twin institutional ideals of a mixed constitution and a contestatory citizenry. It then looks at the classical liberal opposition that arose in response to Italian-Atlantic republicanism. It also discusses the views of Kant and Rousseau about freedom and the role of the citizenry, as well as their theory of the constitution. The absolutist opposition in Jean Bodin and Thomas Hobbes to the institutional ideals of republicanism is also explored.

When we think about what constitutes being a good citizen, routine activities such as voting, letter writing, and paying attention to the news spring to mind. But this book argues that these ...
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When we think about what constitutes being a good citizen, routine activities such as voting, letter writing, and paying attention to the news spring to mind. But this book argues that these activities are only a small part of democratic citizenship—a standard of citizenship that requires creative thinking, talking, and acting. For it, the author met with labor, church, business, and sports organizations and proposed to them four fictive scenarios: what if your senator is involved in a scandal, or your police department is engaged in racial profiling, or a local factory violates pollution laws, or your nearby airport is slated for expansion? The conversations these challenges inspire, he shows, require imagination. And what people can imagine doing in response to those scenarios depends on what's possible, what's important, what's right, and what's feasible. By talking with one another, an engaged citizenry draws from a repertoire of personal and institutional resources to understand and reimagine responses to situations as they arise. Building on such political discussions, the book shows how a rich culture of association and democratic discourse provides the infrastructure for a healthy democracy.Less

Citizen Speak : The Democratic Imagination in American Life

Andrew J. Perrin

Published in print: 2006-11-01

When we think about what constitutes being a good citizen, routine activities such as voting, letter writing, and paying attention to the news spring to mind. But this book argues that these activities are only a small part of democratic citizenship—a standard of citizenship that requires creative thinking, talking, and acting. For it, the author met with labor, church, business, and sports organizations and proposed to them four fictive scenarios: what if your senator is involved in a scandal, or your police department is engaged in racial profiling, or a local factory violates pollution laws, or your nearby airport is slated for expansion? The conversations these challenges inspire, he shows, require imagination. And what people can imagine doing in response to those scenarios depends on what's possible, what's important, what's right, and what's feasible. By talking with one another, an engaged citizenry draws from a repertoire of personal and institutional resources to understand and reimagine responses to situations as they arise. Building on such political discussions, the book shows how a rich culture of association and democratic discourse provides the infrastructure for a healthy democracy.

This chapter focuses on one group of people who are represented by decision makers in jurisdictions other than theirs: the quasi-citizens. Most of the concepts commonly used to characterize ...
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This chapter focuses on one group of people who are represented by decision makers in jurisdictions other than theirs: the quasi-citizens. Most of the concepts commonly used to characterize representative democratic institutions are concerned with the way in which the people give themselves laws, not with bringing other governments and citizens of other countries into the discussion. These concepts implicitly assume that the representatives of the core citizenry charged with foreign policy know enough about others to make policy in the interest of the core. This chapter explores the relationship between a set of democratic decision makers and the governments and citizens of other polities, as well as the way in which decision makers must reach out and somehow incorporate governments and citizens of other jurisdictions in order to benefit their own core citizenry. It also stresses the need to think about the institutionalization of quasi-citizens and their governments in the process of decision making.Less

Quasi-Citizens in Other Jurisdictions Are Represented

Douglas A. Chalmers

Published in print: 2014-01-27

This chapter focuses on one group of people who are represented by decision makers in jurisdictions other than theirs: the quasi-citizens. Most of the concepts commonly used to characterize representative democratic institutions are concerned with the way in which the people give themselves laws, not with bringing other governments and citizens of other countries into the discussion. These concepts implicitly assume that the representatives of the core citizenry charged with foreign policy know enough about others to make policy in the interest of the core. This chapter explores the relationship between a set of democratic decision makers and the governments and citizens of other polities, as well as the way in which decision makers must reach out and somehow incorporate governments and citizens of other jurisdictions in order to benefit their own core citizenry. It also stresses the need to think about the institutionalization of quasi-citizens and their governments in the process of decision making.